Dear Neighbors,
Lent is here! On Wednesday, I put ashes on my forehead to remind myself of redemption, the coming of spring, and of course the start of fish fries on Friday! This Friday, I will be starting the annual tour of charitable fish fries beginning with the Little Falls Lions at the VFW. I hope to see many of you supporting our local organizations.
I am currently working on a couple of initiatives for our area. I have introduced a rural broadband funding bill so that we can continue our border-to-border grant program. In order to keep our broadband efforts moving, we need to coordinate federal programs, private investment, telecommunications reform, and state dollars to maximize our effectiveness. I am leading the discussion on MN broadband adoption and will work to continue to improve our broadband speeds.
Child abuse and foster care are still on my list of priorities. Too many children are in need of safe, stable homes and we need to give incentives to families who volunteer for foster care.
Additionally, we are committed to passing a long-term transportation bill that will improve our transportation infrastructure for rural Minnesota. Lastly, there are property tax reductions and middle class tax relief in the tax bill. It may only be a 10-week session, but a lot of work is ahead.
Finally, this is the time to cheer on local teams as we enter postseason winter sports. Good luck to all the school athletes on your quest to a state title!
Warmest regards,
Ron